The 2022 Winter Paralympics officially began on Friday, with the start of the Games marked with the presence of the full Ukrainian delegation inside Beijing's Bird's Nest Stadium at the opening ceremony.
All of Ukraine's para athletes made it to the Chinese capital – a feat described as a "miracle" by Ukrainian Paralympic Committee chairman Valery Suskevich – and their participation in these Games was met with a show of support from Andrew Parsons. President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
Parsons gave a stern speech that called for peace in the world and expressed his dismay at the ongoing conflicts, though stopped referring to Ukraine or Russia by name.
"Tonight, I want to - I want to - start with a message of peace," Parsons said. “As the leader of an organization that has inclusion at its core, where diversity is celebrated and differences are embraced, I am in awe of what is happening in the world at the moment. The 21st century is a time of dialogue and diplomacy. Time is not for war and hate.
"The Olympic struggle for peace during the Olympic and Paralympic Games is a United Nations resolution. It should be respected and followed, not violated."
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has significantly affected the sporting world, with many governing bodies imposing sanctions on Russia and its athletes.
The IPC soon followed suit and, the day before the start of the Paralympic Games, decided to ban all Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in Beijing. Belarus remains a major military ally of Russia and is being used as a launch point for troops in Ukraine.
"At IPC we wish for a better and more inclusive world, free of discrimination, free of hatred, free of ignorance and free of conflict," Parsons said. "Here in Beijing, Paralympic athletes from 46 different countries will compete against each other, not against each other.
“Through sport they will showcase the best of humanity and highlight the values that should underpin a peaceful and inclusive world. Tonight, the Paralympic Movement calls on world officials to come together like athletes, promoting peace, understanding and inclusion. calls to give.
"The world should be divided, not divided."
He said "Peace!" ended his speech with the slogan of
A record number of para athletes - around 700 - were expected to compete in Beijing, but the day before the opening ceremony focused on the 83 who would not.
The IPC then announced a U-turn decision to bar Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in the Games in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
According to the IPC, the reaction of teams and athletes preparing to compete in Beijing was "jeopardizing the viability" of the Games and making the safety of the athletes "untenable", even though Russian and Belarusian participants were treated as neutrals. prepared to compete in.
The first events of the Winter Paralympics are scheduled for Saturday. The competition runs until 13 March and features 78 events in six para sports: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, para ice hockey, snowboarding and wheelchair curling.
Like last month's Winter Olympics, events will be held in three different regions of central Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou.
Russia and Belarus sanctions - how did it come about?
After Russian troops were deployed for the first time in Ukraine last week, the IPC issued a condemnation of Russian President Vladimir Putin's violation of the Olympic Truth - a resolution that stoked conflicts around the world from seven days before the Winter Olympics. orders to stop. Winter Paralympics.
Then on Monday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) "recommended" that Russian and Belarusian athletes be either banned from international sporting events or allowed to compete as neutrals, with "short notice" of the decision. would make the ban unfeasible.
Earlier this week, Parsons said that allowing Russian and Belarusian participation in Beijing, although as neutral, was the "harshest possible punishment" at the governing body's disposal, but pressure from the international para sport community has forced the IPC to take drastic measures. forced to resort to.
A statement issued by Ukrainian athletes said Russia and Belarus would use the Games "with or without state propaganda [...] with or without a neutral label," while US Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland declined to release. said the decision. A full participation ban "excuses Russia's disregard not only for the Olympic ceasefire, but also for the victims of a senseless war."
The IPC was left in a "unique and impossible position", according to Parsons, who said several countries had threatened not to compete in Beijing.
Having previously said Russian and Belarusian athletes could compete as neutrals, the IPC on Thursday barred 71 athletes from Russia and 12 athletes from Belarus from participating in the Games. "You are a victim of the actions of your governments" was Parsons' message to those affected by the decision.
When do events start?
The action begins in Beijing, the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games, with medal events in the men's and women's para alpine skiing downhill and the men's and women's para biathlon on Saturday.
There will be a team of 96 athletes competing in all six sports during the Games in host China. After claiming their first medal - a gold in wheelchair curling - in Pyeongchang four years ago, there are high hopes that this year's Chinese team can deliver more success.
Team USA topped the medal tally at the Paralympics last winter and sent a 67-strong team this year - 28 of which are making their Paralympic debuts.
Among the athletes returning to the team is Oksana Masters, a 10-time Paralympic medalist in the Summer and Winter Games, who has competed in rowing, cycling, cross-country skiing and biathlon.
Born in Ukraine before being adopted by her American mother, Masters has been one of the most decorated Paralympic athletes for the past decade. Before the Games, he said that he was "heartbroken" for the country of his birth.
Other stars on the American team include hockey player Declan Farmer – whose two goals helped America defeat Canada and win gold at previous Games – and Dan Consensen, a former Navy SEAL who won biathlon and cross-country skiing in four. Won six medals. year ago.
On the Canadian team, cross-country skier Brian McKeever will compete in his sixth and final Paralympic Games at age 42. McKeever, the most decorated male cross-country skier at the Paralympics, has earned 17 medals since his debut in 2002. Of which 13 are gold.
Ukrainian athlete survived 'bombing and shelling'
Ukraine has sent an entire contingent of 20 athletes and nine guides to Beijing to participate in biathlon and cross-country skiing events.
The team's arrival in Beijing was seen as a "miracle" by Sushkevich.
"We came here from Ukraine and we traveled to Ukraine. It took us several days. We had to overcome many obstacles associated with the war," Sushkevich told reporters on Thursday.
"Many of our team members barely survived the bombing and shelling, but we still made it here."
Sushkevich said he slept on the floor of the team bus for the last two days of his trip through Europe before flying to Beijing, adding: "We could have given up and not come to Beijing. The situation was; bombs were exploding, missiles were exploding.
"There is a massive war going on in Ukraine. When the simple things can't be settled, the easiest solution would have been to stay in Ukraine."
What are the COVID-19 protocols?
The COVID-19 countermeasures that were there for the Winter Olympics in February are being implemented for the Paralympics as well.
It includes a "closed loop" system that includes venues, conference centers and hotels and is connected to a dedicated transportation service for the Games. Fully vaccinated enables participants to enter a "closed loop" without quarantine, while those who are not vaccinated have to isolate for 21 days upon arrival.
Once inside the "closed loop", sport participants are subjected to daily COVID-19 tests and, if they test positive, they are confined to a room in an isolation facility, until they Two consecutive negative tests are not at least 24 hours apart.
At the conclusion of the Winter Olympics on 20 February, a total of 437 COVID-19 cases were reported among Olympic-related personnel after more than 1.8 million tests; Of those positive tests, 185 pertain to athletes and team officials.
Between the end of the Olympics and Wednesday, which marked two days before the opening ceremony of the Paralympics, another 17 cases of COVID-19 were reported.